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February 04, 2007

Bill Gates Is Dead, Foreigners Are Mad Maxing in Hongdae, says YTN

Bill Gates dead!

Or so reported YTN, paragon of journalistic virtue and credibility, where high standards and ethnical reporting are the rule.

That was back in 2003.

Wow. It's 2007, and it's heatin' up 'round here, what with all the media's race-baiting "news" on how Korea is being overrun by the foreign, barbarian hordes. More racist tripe about "lawless" bands of renegade foreigners tearing up Seoul, ready to rape hapless Korean women. What is this, Montgomery, Alabama circa 1953?

Let me conduct another "thought experiment" and see if this makes any sense. I'll just replace "Korean" for "foreigner" in the first part of the YTN report (this translation and excerpt comes from this post on The Marmot's Hole).

It’s Saturday night in front Hongik University

A group of three or four Koreans with short hair ogle a passing girl.

They yell and point…

The girl, who was talking on the phone, flees the area as if she were startled.

In the alleyways, you can easily find Koreans making comments to passing women.

[Interview: local resident]

“Simply put, it’s at a point that you could take it as harassment.”

“Is this a normal scene?”

“Yes.”

It’s common to find Koreans drinking anywhere.

You can even find Koreans drinking by fires they’ve set on the street.

Drunken, some urinate on the sidewalk, while others are making out even on the street.

Outrageous behavior such as this continues straight till dawn.

If this reporter actually had actually been to Hongdae on a social basis, he'd see that yes, there are a few foreigner idiots walking around drunk off their ass, making trouble. But he'd also see that there are "roving bands" of Koreans doing the exact same shit.

The Barbarian hordes are at the Hongdae front gate.
Gives a whole new meaning to "홍대정문 앞."

Wait, that reporter probably does occasionally come to Hongdae, but yet filed that report anyway, which totally goes against even his own experience there.

And in the big picture, I don't even see very much of this kind of behavior, and I have had a long and changing relationship (see here and here) with the place.

I have hung out there, danced there, and most importantly, explored its darkest alleyways, nooks, and crannies with my camera.

Neither Shinchon nor Hongdae is overrun with lawless foreigners, and if they wanna see some static, they should hang around Shinchon at 3 AM to see bands of Korean men walking around making rude and lewd comments to passersby.

Aren't they cops? With big batons, uniforms, and the ability to gather in large numbers?

Wait, wait.

Let me get this straight.

THE KOREAN POLICE, WHICH PUTS DOWN RIOTS AND PUBLIC DEMONSTRATIONS WITH HELICOPTERS AND TEAR GAS, AND JUST NOT TOO LONG AGO BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF A DRUNK SOLDIER, CAN'T HANDLE A COUPLE LOUDMOUTHED ENGLISH TEACHERS?

Give me a big, fat, Nell motherfucking Carter break.

The absolute most I've ever seen some dumbass foreigners do is be loud and rowdy there. And if the shit goes down, then you call the police. And if the goddamn po-po can't handle it, then you call for more, who will bring bigger sticks.

It's not Mad fuckin' Max Beyond Thunderdome out there, with the cops running around on foot from the mad foreign bikers and their mutant offspring.

Of course, though, since most Koreans are more than eager to believe anything said about foreigners in the press, but keep a skeptical eye about everything else, it's just more grist for the racist mill.

Comments

Or so reported YTN, paragon of journalistic virtue and credibility, where high standards and ethnical reporting are the rule.

That was back in 2003.

Wow. It's 2007, and it's heatin' up 'round here, what with all the media's race-baiting "news" on how Korea is being overrun by the foreign, barbarian hordes. More racist tripe about "lawless" bands of renegade foreigners tearing up Seoul, ready to rape hapless Korean women. What is this, Montgomery, Alabama circa 1953?

Let me conduct another "thought experiment" and see if this makes any sense. I'll just replace "Korean" for "foreigner" in the first part of the YTN report (this translation and excerpt comes from this post on The Marmot's Hole).

It’s Saturday night in front Hongik University

A group of three or four Koreans with short hair ogle a passing girl.

They yell and point…

The girl, who was talking on the phone, flees the area as if she were startled.

In the alleyways, you can easily find Koreans making comments to passing women.

[Interview: local resident]

“Simply put, it’s at a point that you could take it as harassment.”

“Is this a normal scene?”

“Yes.”

It’s common to find Koreans drinking anywhere.

You can even find Koreans drinking by fires they’ve set on the street.

Drunken, some urinate on the sidewalk, while others are making out even on the street.

Outrageous behavior such as this continues straight till dawn.

If this reporter actually had actually been to Hongdae on a social basis, he'd see that yes, there are a few foreigner idiots walking around drunk off their ass, making trouble. But he'd also see that there are "roving bands" of Koreans doing the exact same shit.

The Barbarian hordes are at the Hongdae front gate.
Gives a whole new meaning to "홍대정문 앞."

Wait, that reporter probably does occasionally come to Hongdae, but yet filed that report anyway, which totally goes against even his own experience there.

And in the big picture, I don't even see very much of this kind of behavior, and I have had a long and changing relationship (see here and here) with the place.

I have hung out there, danced there, and most importantly, explored its darkest alleyways, nooks, and crannies with my camera.

Neither Shinchon nor Hongdae is overrun with lawless foreigners, and if they wanna see some static, they should hang around Shinchon at 3 AM to see bands of Korean men walking around making rude and lewd comments to passersby.

Aren't they cops? With big batons, uniforms, and the ability to gather in large numbers?

Wait, wait.

Let me get this straight.

THE KOREAN POLICE, WHICH PUTS DOWN RIOTS AND PUBLIC DEMONSTRATIONS WITH HELICOPTERS AND TEAR GAS, AND JUST NOT TOO LONG AGO BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF A DRUNK SOLDIER, CAN'T HANDLE A COUPLE LOUDMOUTHED ENGLISH TEACHERS?

Give me a big, fat, Nell motherfucking Carter break.

The absolute most I've ever seen some dumbass foreigners do is be loud and rowdy there. And if the shit goes down, then you call the police. And if the goddamn po-po can't handle it, then you call for more, who will bring bigger sticks.

It's not Mad fuckin' Max Beyond Thunderdome out there, with the cops running around on foot from the mad foreign bikers and their mutant offspring.

Of course, though, since most Koreans are more than eager to believe anything said about foreigners in the press, but keep a skeptical eye about everything else, it's just more grist for the racist mill.

"Why Be Critical?"

Before you say this site is "anti-Korean" or bashing Korea – read this: "Why Be Critical?" Chances are, if you're simply angry because I am a social critic in Korea but not actually Korean, see if your argument isn't just a kneejerk response that follows these patterns.

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